Guitar



(No Model.)

JpG. BATES.

GUITAR.

Patented Apr. 2, 1895'.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN GREGG BATES, OF WEST SUPERIOR, IVISOONSIN.

GUITAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 536,846, dated April 2, 1895.

' Application filed Jun@ 21,1894. serial No. 515,248.. (No moda To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN GREGG BATES, a citizen of the United States, residing at West Superior, in the county of Douglas, State of Visconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Guitars; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention is an improvement iu guitars and relates particularly to the construction of the bridge.

The object of my invention is to provide a neat and simple form of bridge that shall be exceedingly strong and prevent the bridge being pulled away from the body or top by the tension of the strings.

. which will be fully described hereinafter and pointed out in the claim.v

In the drawings formingapart of this speci- Iication, Figure l is atop plan view of my irnproved guitar. Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2 2 of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3 3 of Fig. l.

Referring to the drawings, A indicates the body of myimproved guitar and B the sounding board. The left side of the body is made straight or flat or slightlyT deflected either way as shown at B, instead of being curved as shown at B2, which is the usual manner of making the sides. By making the left side straight or slightly deiiected either way the area of the sounding board surface adjacent to the bass strings is increased and the resonating properties greatly improved because the bass notes require a larger resonating surface.

The bridge C is of the usual or well known construction and passing therethrough is a series of pegs or pins C to which the strings are attached. These pegs or pins preferably pass through the bridge C, soundboard B and also through a block or strip of wood D secured upon the under side of the sounding board.

The bridge is glued to the sounding board as usual and in addition to this fasteningI provide a series of pinsE preferably of wood which pass obliquely forward through the block or strip D, through the sounding board B and into the bridge O one of these pins being arranged between each pair of pegs O as clearly shown in Fig. 3. These pins are passed into the bridge to the rear of the pegs C and at an angle to prevent the bridge being pulled away from the board by the tension of said strings as it has been found that with bridges as ordinarily constructed they pull away at the rear side but by having the pins passing into said bridge from the rear side and also at an angle this tendency to pull away from the rear end is prevented. Furthermore as a securing pin is arranged between each pair of pegs there is no danger of either end being pulled away by the strain upon said end.

It will thus be seen that I provide a guitar in which the resonating properties of the board are improved and also one in which the bridge is securely fastened and not likely to be pulled away by the tension of metallic strings.

I-Iaving thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

In a guitar, the combination, with the sounding board B, of the bridge C, arranged thereon, a block or plate D, arranged upon the under side of the board, beneath the bridge and slightly to the rear of ther same, said block or plate being of the same width and length as the bridge, the pegs C, passing through the bridge, board, and block or plate, and the oblique pins E, passing through the block, plate, and board, and partly through the bridge, said pins being arranged to alternate with the pegs G', substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN GREGG BATES.

Witnesses:

W. M. GRAHAM, FRANK E. EVANS. 

